Developing Students’ Problem Solving Skills through Constructivist Approach in Physics at Secondary Level
Abstract
To determine the effectiveness of the 7E Eisenkraft teaching paradigm on student performance (i.e. ability to solve problems), this study was carried out at secondary level physics students. Research design was Quasi-experimental. Students at public high and higher secondary schools in the Sargodha area who were in the 10th grade and studying "physics" participated in the study. To choose a representative sample, a multi-stage sampling approach was utilized. Out of 11 female schools and 15 male schools in Sargodha City, two secondary schools were easily picked in the first stage. Two 10th grade classrooms from each school were randomly selected for the second stage. Randomly, two experimental groups and two control groups were formed. In 10th grade, 169 students were in four intact classrooms of physics. Nine weeks was the duration of the experiment. Instrument utilized as pre-test and post-test was Problem Solving Ability Test in Physics (PSATP). Cronbach's Alpha of the scale was 0.71. For analysis of data, independent sample t-test and ANOVA were used. After treatment, result showed that 7E Eisenkraft instructional model had significantly impact on students’ performance in Physics subject. It was concluded that, male and female students in the experimental groups performed better than their respective counterparts in the control groups on (PSATP). It is recommended that, training institutions for teachers i.e. Quaid-e-Azam Academic for Educational Development (QAED) should incorporate 7E instructional strategy into their curricula/training, and they should take practical steps to train prospective teachers and enhance their capacity building with an emphasis on ability of problem solving among the students.
